This invention relates to lottery systems, and more specifically to account based lottery systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,327,485 to Leaden, entitled xe2x80x9cTelephone Lottery Play System,xe2x80x9d issued Jul. 5, 1994 (hereinafter the ""485 patent), describes a lottery system where a customer buys a lottery booklet with a plurality of numbered playslips for recording lottery plays. The customer calls a telephone lottery computer that interfaces the customer with a state lottery gaming computer. Through the telephone lottery computer, the customer places a lottery play after providing a play slip number. The customer can record the play on the playslip in writing, and a transaction number is provided by the system, also for recording on the playslip. Each playslip thereafter serves as a single lottery ticket for validation and redemption purposes.
A second lottery system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,203,011 to Nulph, entitled xe2x80x9cSystem for Administering an Interactive Transaction in a Lottery Game,xe2x80x9d issued Mar. 20, 2001 (hereinafter the ""011 patent). In the system of the ""011 patent, a lottery ticket is printed having a plurality of play spots thereon. Each play spot has a predetermined value from a set of values, and the values are distributed randomly on the tickets. Each of the playspots is covered with a removable medium, and a unique identifier is placed on each ticket. A record of the unique identifier and the value of the play spot for the ticket are stored in a database. After a customer identifies a ticket by the unique identifier to a controlling authority, the customer selects the lottery numbers to be played. The controlling authority then instructs the customer as to which play spots to uncover. The ticket then serves as the customer""s lottery ticket for validation and redemption.
While both the ""485 and ""011 patents allow a customer to prepay for the ability to place lottery plays at a time after purchase of a lottery ticket or book of tickets, there remains a need to incorporate such flexibility within an account based lottery system where lottery agents are not excised from the process, such that the lottery agents are motivated to actively support sales efforts.
A lottery is administered by receiving from a user a communication identifying a unique identification code of a first selected card from a plurality of lottery cards distributed to at least one lottery agent for sale to at least one user. Each of the lottery cards from the plurality of lottery cards has a unique identification code disposed thereon and each of the lottery cards is associated with a predefined monetary amount. A user account associated with the unique identification code for the first selected card is established. The user account has a balance equivalent to the predefined monetary amount associated with the first selected card. A communication identifying a first chosen play for a lottery game is received from a user, and the first chosen play is associated with the user account. A cost of the first chosen play is deducted from the balance of the user account. A remaining balance in the user account is available for making at least one subsequent play. If it is verified that the first chosen play is a winner, a winning monetary amount for the first chosen play is credited to the user account. The winning monetary amount may be redeemed upon presentation of the first selected card to an authorized lottery agent.
The above and other features of the present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention that is provided in connection with the accompanying drawings.